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1
October 2001
Hello
friends and Family
I canoed the Illinois River. Covered 327 Miles in 14 days and a few hours.
Had lots of sunburn, some blisters, and lots of memories. It was a tough
trip because the water was low and I was forced to paddle all the way.
Make that 25 – 35 strokes a minute and for about ten hours a day paddling.
Most days I made about 20 miles, but there were days with the wind that only 15
hard miles were hard earned. It rained 4 times. Three were at night
but I had a good tent. Two days were paddled partially in the rain.
I am
still wondering what this time will do to me. It was a different world out
there and for two weeks all that I did was canoe and think and canoe and think.
And I watched the beauty of this river world. Saw more great blue herons than
you will ever see in your life. And observed bittern, kingfishers, gulls, great
egrets and a myriad of other things. Saw beaver and muskrat and turtles and
fish and flowers and the river stretching away for miles. All the river was the
same but it was all different. And it stretched on for miles as I ticked them
off on my US Army Corps of Engineers map. Checked and watched each mile flow by
on paper and before my eyes. Saw bridges and docks on the map and then observed
each as I flowed under. Many of those bridges, I now have seen from a number of
different directions. They look a lot different from under.
It was
good for me.
But it
was not the world the rest of you were living in during that time. America
changed while I was on the River. I am not sure whether I liked missing all the
events of 9-11 but it doesn’t really matter. I was on the river and the river
did not change. It just kept flowing on. The river moves slowly in September.
To make it go faster, I paddled. If I do the trip again, I would try to be more
like the river in September – slow and enjoying the days before the winter
comes.
Here is my schedule and paddling success.
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9 Sept |
River Mile 326.7. Departed
Chicago Navy Pier on Lake Michigan at 8 AM and entered the Chicago River
that joins the South Branch of the Chicago River. The Chicago River becomes
the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. Reached MM 303.5 at 8:30 PM. It rained
off and on all day. Slept on a dock pontoon
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10
Sept |
River Mile
303.5. Night watchman kicked me off the pontoon at 2:30 AM. So I started
down the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in the fog under a full moon.
Passed through Lockport Lock as the only vessel. The Canal becomes the Des
Plaines River at MM 290. Passed through the Brandon Lock with two other
vessels. Stopped at 6:30 PM at MM 281. Stopped for almost 3 hours because
of the overpowering head wind.
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11 Sept |
River Mile 281.
Started at 7 AM. Stopped at Big Basin Marina where I55 crosses the Des
Plaines. This was my first information on the attack in NY and DC. The Des
Plaines and the Kankakee join to form the Illinois at MM 273. Passed through
the Dresden Island Lock. Stopped at 6:30 PM at MM 257.
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12 Sept |
River Mile 257. Started at 7:30 AM. Passed through Marseilles Lock.
Stopped at 7:30 PM at MM 233
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13 Sept |
River Mile 233. Started at 7 AM. Passed through Starved Rock Lock.
Stopped at 6:30 PM at MM 209
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14 Sept |
River Mile 209. Started at 7 AM. Stopped at 5:30 PM at MM 189 in Lacon.
Met for dinner by GeorgeAnn and Cathy and husbands from E. Peoria HS.
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15 Sept |
River Mile 189. Started at 7:15 AM. Stopped at Chillicothe for lunch with
River Sweep. Canoed through the Peoria Lakes where the Illinois is widest.
Stopped at 4:30 PM at MM 165 in E. Peoria. Cathy and Richard took me out to
eat and I picked up supplies.
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16 Sept |
River Mile 165. Started at 7:30 AM. Half of the distance was covered at
8:30 AM. Passed through Peoria Locks. Stopped at 6 PM at MM 142 near
Banner.
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17 Sept |
River Mile 142.
Started at 7:20 AM. Stopped at 5:15 PM at MM 120 in Havana.
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18 Sept |
River Mile 120. Started at 7:15 AM. Stopped at 4:30 PM at MM 97 in
Browning. Paddled the last 4.5 miles in the rain. Found the Rivers Edge
Marina and Camped under it. It rained two inches this evening but I was
warm and in friendly hands. Celebrated my 61st birthday here.
Cathy B’s cake was wonderful.
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19 Sept |
River Mile 97. Started at 9:00 AM. Stopped at 6:30 PM at MM 85. Fought a
head wind the entire day.
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20 Sept |
River Mile 85. Started at 6:30 AM. Started in the Fog. Passed through
LaGrange Lock. Stopped at 4:30 PM at MM 65 in Naples. Thundershowers
began early and continued all nite. It rained about an inch this evening.
Met the Mayor of Naples.
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21
Sept
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River Mile 65.
Started at 6:30 AM. Stopped at 5:15 PM at MM 32 in Kampsville. Had a great
steak dinner at
the Kampsville Inn |
| 22 Sept |
River Mile 32. Started at 7:30 AM. Stopped at 5:30 PM at MM 7 in Pere
Marquette State Park. Cooked my last meal on the river’s edge. A
thundershower came through at 4:30 AM, which meant the 4th rain
of the trip.
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| 23 Sept |
River Mile 7. Started at 7:30 AM Stopped at 9:50 AM at MM 0 in
Grafton. Went to the Loading Dock for breakfast coffee and a hamburger.
Loaded the gear on the truck and came home.
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I never
encountered a problem and was only afraid one time and that was handled. Barges
came and were soon out of sight up or down the river. They were minor nuisances
as were the other boats. The ocean-going boats passing from the Great Lakes to
the Gulf caused a serious wake problem but most of the captains had good water
manners. The weekends were busy with small boats roaring up and down the
river. Most pleasure boaters used the river as a highway. They seemed to go
like hell from Point A to Point B with little care what was happening in
between. Most waved as they roared by. I usually waved back. Only a couple
stopped to talk although most will probably have wondered what that old boy was
doing out there alone. I wonder if a week before they might have stopped to
talk. Probably not? Just like a observing a person, outfitted with camping
gear, bicycling across down a country road, we would conjecture but not ask.
We, in
America, are going down some road or river into the future. I suppose that
it will not be the slow river of September.
Thanks
for sharing my adventure.
Dr. Bob
Williams
Box 2222
Southern
Illinois University
Edwardsville, IL 62026
618.650.3788
rivers@siue.edu
http://www.siue.edu/OSME/river
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